Fiber optic adapter block

ABSTRACT

A fiber optic adapter block is disclosed. The fiber optic adapter block includes at least three fiber optic adapters provided in a stacked arrangement extending widthwise in a longitudinal direction, wherein every other adapter of the at least three fiber optic adapters is staggered in a front to back direction with respect to an adjacent adapter such that front ends of the every other adapter of the at least three fiber optic adapters are aligned at a first depth and a front end of the adjacent adapter is at a second depth that is different than the first depth.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application claims priority to U.S. Provisional ApplicationNo. 61/587,245, filed Jan. 17, 2012 and U.S. Provisional Application No.61/704,288, filed Sep. 21, 2012. The disclosures of these applicationsare hereby incorporated by reference in their entireties.

FIELD

The present disclosure relates generally to fiber optictelecommunications equipment. More specifically, the present disclosurerelates to a fiber optic adapter block designed for high densityapplications.

BACKGROUND

As demand for telecommunications increases, fiber optic networks arebeing extended in more and more areas. Management of the cables, ease ofinstallation, and ease of accessibility for later management areimportant concerns. As a result, there is a need for fiber optic devicesand methods which address these and other concerns.

SUMMARY

The present invention relates to a fiber optic telecommunicationsdevice. The telecommunications device is a fiber optic adapter block.

According to one aspect of the disclosure, fiber optic adapters arearranged in a staggered alternating arrangement to facilitate improvedconnector access. Small form factor connectors particularly benefit fromsuch a construction. Examples include LC and LX.5.

According to one example embodiment, the adapter block defines agenerally one-piece molded body that defines a plurality of integrallyformed adapters for optically connecting fiber optic cables terminatedwith connectors.

According to another embodiment, the adapter block defines a pluralityof adapters provided in a stacked arrangement in a longitudinaldirection, such as from a right side to a left side of the adapterblock, wherein every other adapter of the block of adapters is staggeredin a transverse direction, such as in a front to back direction withrespect to an adjacent adapter.

According to another aspect, the fiber optic adapter block includes atleast three fiber optic adapters provided in a stacked arrangementextending widthwise from a right to left direction on the block, whereinevery other adapter of the at least three fiber optic adapters isstaggered in a front to back direction with respect to an adjacentadapter such that front ends of the every other adapter of the at leastthree fiber optic adapters are aligned at a first depth and a front endof the adjacent adapter is at a second depth that is different than thefirst depth.

The adapter block can be arranged in a variety of orientations. Theadapter block can be incorporated into a variety of telecommunicationsequipment, including fixtures, panels, frames, drawers, and chassis. Theadapter block can be stationarily mounted, or mounted for movement on apivoting element, and/or on a sliding element.

A variety of additional inventive aspects will be set forth in thedescription that follows. The inventive aspects can relate to individualfeatures and combinations of features. It is to be understood that boththe foregoing general description and the following detailed descriptionare exemplary and explanatory only and are not restrictive of the broadinventive concepts upon which the embodiments disclosed herein arebased.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a front perspective view of an adapter block having featuresthat are examples of inventive aspects in accordance with the presentdisclosure;

FIG. 2 is a rear perspective view of the adapter block of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a top view of the adapter block of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a right side view of the adapter block of FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a left side view of the adapter block of FIG. 1;

FIG. 6 is a front view of the adapter block of FIG. 1;

FIG. 7 is a rear view of the adapter block of FIG. 1;

FIG. 8 illustrates the front perspective view of the adapter block ofFIG. 1 with a number of fiber optic connector mounted thereon;

FIG. 9 is a top view of the adapter block of FIG. 8;

FIG. 10 is a front view of the adapter block of FIG. 8;

FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional view of an example adapter having a mediareading interface configured to collect information stored in memorydisposed on a fiber optic connector;

FIG. 12 illustrates a technician accessing one of the fiber opticconnectors mounted on the adapter block of FIG. 1;

FIG. 13 is a front perspective view of another embodiment of an adapterblock having features that are examples of inventive aspects inaccordance with the present disclosure;

FIG. 14 is a top view of the adapter block of FIG. 13;

FIG. 15 is a right side view of the adapter block of FIG. 13;

FIG. 16 is a left side view of the adapter block of FIG. 13; and

FIG. 17 is a front view of the adapter block of FIG. 13.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Reference will now be made in detail to examples of inventive aspects ofthe present disclosure which are illustrated in the accompanyingdrawings. Wherever possible, the same reference numbers will be usedthroughout the drawings to refer to the same or like parts.

Referring to FIGS. 1-7, a fiber optic adapter block 10 having featuresthat are examples of inventive aspects in accordance with the presentdisclosure are illustrated. The fiber optic adapter block 10 defines afront end 12, a rear end 14, a right side 16, a left side 18, a top side20, and a bottom side 22. In the depicted embodiment, the fiber opticadapter block 10 defines a plurality of fiber optic adapters 24 havingan LC footprint that are configured to optically connect a pair of LCstyle fiber optic connectors 26. In the depicted embodiment, the adapterblock 10 defines a generally one-piece unitary molded body 28, whereinthe plurality of adapters 24 are integrally formed with the one-piecebody 28. According to one example embodiment, the body 28 and theintegrally formed adapters 24 may be molded from a polymeric material.In the depicted embodiment, the block 24 defines six LC-type duplexadapters 24 extending widthwise from the right side 16 to the left side18 of the body 28 for a total of twelve possible connections.

As will be discussed in further detail below, the adapter block 10 ismolded such that every other duplex adapter 24 is staggered in a frontto back direction with respect to an adjacent adapter as the adapters 24extend from the right side 16 to the left side 18 of the block 10. Thestaggering preferably alternates from the right side to the left side.

FIGS. 8-10 illustrate the fiber optic adapter block 10 with a number ofLC-type fiber optic connectors 26 inserted within the individualadapters 24 of the block 10. LC-type connectors 26 and adapters 24 aregenerally known in the art. A fiber optic connector 26 having an LCfootprint may define a connector body 30 having opposing sidewalls 32,34, a top wall 36, a bottom wall 38, a front end 40, and a rear end 42.Certain portions of the connector body 30 may be formed from a moldedpolymeric material. The connector body 30 normally defines a latch 44extending from the top wall 36 thereof toward the rear end 42, the latch44 extending at an acute angle with respect to the top wall 36 of theconnector body 30. An LC-type connector 26 may also include a latchtrigger 46 that extends from the rear end 42 of the connector body 30toward the front end 40. The latch trigger 46 also normally extends atan acute angle with respect to the top wall 36. The latch trigger 46 isconfigured to come into contact with the latch 44 for flexibly movingthe latch 44 downwardly.

When an LC-type fiber optic connector 26 is placed in an adapter 24 foroptically coupling light from two optical fibers together, the latch 44functions to lock the fiber optic connector 26 in place within a cavity48 of the adapter 24. As is known in the art, the latch 44 normallyincludes a pair of catches 50, each one extending from a side of thelatch 44. Within each adapter cavity 48 is a pair of symmetricallydisposed retaining shoulders 52, each formed by a horizontal surface 54and a vertical surface 56. Please see FIG. 11 for an example of anLC-type fiber optic adapter cavity 48. The horizontal surface 54 of eachshoulder 52 is configured to interact with a catch 50 of the latch 44 todeflect the latch 44 downwardly (i.e., toward the central axis of theconnector 26). The vertical surface 56 of each shoulder 52 is configuredto interact with a vertical surface 58 of a catch 50 to lock the fiberoptic connector 26 within the adapter 24.

During insertion, the interaction between the catches 50 of the latch 44and the horizontal surfaces 54 of the shoulders 52 cause the latch 44 tomove downwardly. The latch 44 springs back (upwardly) after insertion iscomplete. Thereafter, the vertical surfaces 56 of the shoulders 52interact with the vertical surfaces 58 on the catches 50 of the latch 44to lock the connector 26 into the adapter 24.

Removal of the connector 26 is normally accomplished by manuallydepressing the latch 44 downwardly and pulling the connector 26 awayfrom the adapter cavity 48. As noted above, the latch trigger 46 may beused to provide greater access the latch 44 and may be configured tocome into contact with the latch 44 for flexibly moving the latch 44downwardly. When the latch trigger 46 is depressed, the interactionbetween the latch trigger 46 and the latch 44 causes the latch 44 to bepressed in a downward direction, freeing the catch portions 50 of thelatch 44 from the vertical surfaces 56 of the shoulders 52 in removingthe connector 26.

Further details relating to LC-type adapters are described in U.S. Pat.No. 5,647,043, the entire disclosure of which is incorporated herein byreference.

As known, LC-type fiber optic adapters 24 may be provided as duplexadapters wherein each duplex adapter defines a pair of adapter cavities48 positioned next to one another. Duplex clips may be provided on theconnectors 26 for coupling two LC connectors 26 in a side by sideconfiguration. A duplex clip may include a single larger latch triggerthat expands over the individual latch triggers 46 of the connectors 26for removing the two connectors 26 at the same time from a duplex LCadapter 24. An example of a duplex clip is shown and described in U.S.Pat. No. 6,672,898, the entire disclosure of which is incorporatedherein by reference.

When connectors 26 having an LC footprint are mounted in adapter blocksthat provide a high density of connections, a single LC connector 26that is positioned next to another LC connector 26 or between two otherLC connectors 26 may be difficult to access. A technician, when tryingto remove a selected LC connector 26, may unintentionally disconnectmore than one LC connector 26 at a time. This is a particular problemfor rows of three or more connectors 26.

According to the inventive aspects of the present disclosure, the fiberoptic adapter block 10 is molded such that every other adapter 24 (inthe depicted embodiment, every other duplex adapter 24) is staggered ina front to back direction with respect to an adjacent adapter 24 as theadapters 24 extend widthwise from the right side 16 to the left side 18of the block 10. Thus, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, the front ends 60(also the rear ends 62) of the first, the third, and the fifth duplexadapters 24 from the left are aligned at a first depth D₁ along a frontto back direction. Similarly, the front ends 60 (also the rear ends 62)of the second, the fourth, and the sixth duplex adapters from the leftare aligned at a second depth D₂ along a front to back direction,wherein the second depth D₂ is different than the first depth D₁.According to the depicted embodiment, the second depth D₂ is fartherback than the first depth D₁.

In this manner, a technician experiences reduced interference fromadjacent connectors 26 when trying to access a connector 26 that is inthe middle of two other connectors 26. According to the depictedembodiment, the adapter block 10 provides space on at least one side ofthe connector 26 to be removed and the technician can also use portionsof the body 28 of the adapter block 10 for support in removing theconnector 26. Please refer to FIG. 12 for an illustration of atechnician accessing one of the fiber optic connectors 26 mounted to theadapter block 10 of the present disclosure. For example, in the block 10shown in FIG. 1, if a technician wants to access the leftmost connector26, the technician has ample room on the left side of the connector forremoving the connector 26 by pushing the latch 44 and pulling away fromthe adapter block 10. The technician may also use the front left cornerof the adapter block body 28 for support in removing the connector 26.If the technician wants to access the second connector 26 from the left,the technician has ample room on the right side of the connector forremoving the connector 26 since the next adjacent connector 26 to theright is staggered rearwardly and is at a different depth. Thetechnician is also able to use the front right corner of the firstduplex adapter 24 for support in applying the pushing and pulling forceson the connector 26. If the technician wants to access the thirdconnector 26 from the left (i.e., the first connector 26 of the secondduplex adapter 24 from the left), the technician is able to use theright sidewall 64 of the first duplex adapter 24 from the left to limitinterference from the connector 26 to the left of the connector 26 to beremoved. The technician can also use the right sidewall 64 or the frontright corner of the first duplex adapter 24 from the left for support inpulling the third connector 26. The same process is applicable to therest of the connectors 26 on the block 10.

In this manner, when every other duplex adapter 24 is staggered front toback, ease of access to each connector 26 is improved and the unwantedremoval of an adjacent connector is reduced. It should be noted that theconfiguration provided by the adapter block 10 of the present disclosureis different than an adapter block having a stepped configuration,wherein each adapter (or duplex adapter) includes a front end that ispositioned at a farther point than the previous adapter in a row ofadapters. The adapter block 10 of the present disclosure is able toprovide high density, ease of access, and a small footprint for theadapter block, whereas a stepped configuration would either provide fora larger footprint or would require angled mounting of the adapter blockto preserve a similar footprint.

It should be noted that although the depicted adapter block 10 has beendescribed and shown as including six staggered duplex adapters 24, for atotal of twelve single adapters 24 and twelve possible connections, theblock 10 may include other numbers of adapters 24.

Although the adapters 24 of the block 10 have been described and shownas being integrally molded with respect to the block body 28, whereinthe block 10 defines a unitary one-piece molded body 28, in otherembodiments, the individual adapters 24 or the individual duplexadapters 24 may be provided as separable structures, wherein theadapters 24 could be individually mounted in a staggered configurationon a separate support structure. The individual adapters 24 may bepermanently fixed to such a support structure (e.g., via ultrasonicwelding) or may be mounted so as to be removable from the supportstructure.

Although the present disclosure includes the discussion of connectorsand adapters having an LC-type footprint, the inventive aspects of thedisclosure such as the staggered configuration of the adapters areequally applicable to adapters of other formats such as SC-type orLX.5-type adapters.

For example, FIGS. 13-17 illustrate a block 110 with adapters 124 havingan SC-type footprint, wherein the block 110 includes similar features tothat of block 10 in its general configuration. In the depictedembodiment, the adapter block 110 defines a generally one-piece unitarymolded body 128, wherein the plurality of adapters 124 are againintegrally formed with the one-piece body 128. In the depictedembodiment, the block 110 is shown to be formed from six SC-typeadapters.

It should be noted that the individual adapters 124 forming thestaggered configuration of the block 110 may include features found inconventional SC-type adapters. For example, each of the adapters 124 mayinclude internal elements for coupling to SC-type fiber optic connectorhousings. The internal elements (not shown in the figures) may include aferrule alignment sleeve and a pair of inner housing halves. As is knownfor conventional SC type adapters, the pair of inner housing halves maydefine a sleeve mount, wherein each inner housing half of the sleevemount includes a pair of latching hooks for latching to an exterior ofan SC connector housing and an axial bore for receiving the ferrulealignment sleeve.

The internal elements may be positioned into an adapter recess of eachadapter 124 through an opening at the top sides of the adapters 124. Theinternal elements may be placed within the adapter recess in a mannersimilar to that shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,317,663, issued May 20, 1993,the entire disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference.Either a single panel 164 may be used to close all of the openings ofthe adapters 124 or each adapter 124 may include its own panel forclosing the individual openings of the adapters 124 to secure theinternal elements therewithin.

In an alternative embodiment, the internal elements may be moldedintegrally with the body 128 of the adapter block 110 as described infurther detail in U.S. Application Publication No. 2010/0054668, filedAug. 26, 2009, the entire disclosure of which is incorporated herein byreference.

It should be noted that the adapter blocks 10/110 of the presentdisclosure can be configured to be mounted to a variety of differenttelecommunications equipment or fixtures. The adapter blocks 10/110 maybe configured to be movably mounted or fixedly mounted with respect tosuch equipment or fixtures. The adapter blocks 10/110 may be providedwithin the telecommunications equipment or fixture as a modular unitthat is removable, replaceable, or expandable.

Further, in accordance with some aspects, one or more of the adapters 24of the blocks 10/110 may be configured with media reading interfaces orcircuitry 70 to collect data or information from one or more fiber opticconnectors 26 received within the adapters 24, as described in furtherdetail in U.S. Application Publication No. 2011/0262077, filed Feb. 11,2011, the entire disclosure of which is incorporated herein byreference. For example, as shown in FIG. 11 for an LC adapter block, oneor more of the adapter cavities 28 may be configured to hold one or moremedia reading interfaces 70 that are configured to engage memorycontacts 72 on the fiber optic connectors 26. One or more media readinginterfaces 70 may be positioned in the body 28 that defines the adapterblock 10. In certain implementations, the body 28 may define slots 74extending between an exterior of the body and an internal adapterpassage or cavity 48 in which the ferrules of the connectors 26 arereceived.

Certain types of media reading interfaces 70 include one or more contactmembers 76 that are positioned in the slots 74. As shown in FIG. 11, aportion of each contact member 76 extends into a respective one of thepassages or cavities 48 to engage memory contacts 72 on a fiber opticconnector 26. Another portion of each contact member 76 also extends outof the slot 74 to contact a circuit board 80. Telecommunicationsequipment or fixtures to which the adapter block 10 may be mounted maydefine conductive paths that are configured to connect the media readinginterfaces of the adapter 24 with a master circuit board. The mastercircuit board may include or connect (e.g., over a network) to aprocessing unit that is configured to manage physical layer informationobtained by the media reading interfaces.

As noted, example adapters having media reading interfaces and examplefiber optic connectors having suitable memory storage and memorycontacts are shown in further detail in U.S. Application Publication No.2011/0262077, filed Feb. 11, 2011, the entire disclosure of which ishereby incorporated herein by reference.

Although in the foregoing description, terms such as “top”, “bottom”,“front”, “back”, “right”, “left”, “upper”, and “lower were used for easeof description and illustration, no restriction is intended by such useof the terms. The telecommunications devices described herein can beused in any orientation, depending upon the desired application.

The illustrated embodiment shows the connector axes at 90° to thelongitudinal direction (right to left as described). The angle could beturned if desired, such as for cable management.

Having described the preferred aspects and embodiments of the presentinvention, modifications and equivalents of the disclosed concepts mayreadily occur to one skilled in the art. However, it is intended thatsuch modifications and equivalents be included within the scope of theclaims which are appended hereto.

The invention claimed is:
 1. A fiber optic adapter block comprising: atleast three fiber optic adapters provided in a stacked arrangementextending widthwise in a longitudinal direction, wherein every otheradapter of the at least three fiber optic adapters is staggered in afront to back direction with respect to an adjacent adapter such thatfront ends of the every other adapter of the at least three fiber opticadapters are aligned at a first depth and a front end of the adjacentadapter is at a second depth that is different than the first depth,wherein the fiber optic adapter block is configured such that the atleast three fiber optic adapters all define parallel adapter axes andeach adapter at least partially overlaps with an adjacent adapter whenviewed along the longitudinal direction, and wherein the at least threeadapters of the fiber optic adapter block are integrally formed with aunitary one-piece molded body of the fiber optic adapter block.
 2. Afiber optic assembly according to claim 1, wherein rear ends of theevery other adapter of the at least three fiber optic adapters arealigned at a third depth and a rear end of the adjacent adapter is at afourth depth that is different than the third depth.
 3. A fiber opticassembly according to claim 1, wherein the at least three fiber opticadapters are configured for interconnecting LC-type fiber opticconnectors.
 4. A fiber optic assembly according to claim 3, wherein eachfiber optic adapter of the at least three fiber optic adapters defines aduplex LC-type fiber optic adapter for providing a total of at least sixconnections.
 5. A fiber optic assembly according to claim 4, wherein theat least three fiber optic adapters include at least six duplex LC-typefiber optic adapters for providing a total of at least twelveconnections.
 6. A fiber optic assembly according to claim 1, wherein theat least three fiber optic adapters include at least six fiber opticadapters.
 7. A fiber optic assembly according to claim 1, wherein the atleast three fiber optic adapters are configured for interconnectingSC-type fiber optic connectors.
 8. A fiber optic assembly according toclaim 1, wherein the parallel adapter axes of the at least three fiberoptic adapters are perpendicular to a line defined along thelongitudinal direction.